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How We’re Making Boston a City That’s World-Class Because It Works for the Middle Class

From around the world and across our nation, people look to Boston for hope, for opportunity, and for a chance to build a better life.

From the first immigrant who set foot on the Shawmut Peninsula to the first student from Puerto Rico who stepped into a new classroom this fall, for nearly four centuries Boston has been more than the place we share. It’s the hope we bring. It’s our determination to show a better way forward, lifting one another up along the way. This spirit has continues to remain in Boston.

To take our city to new heights, we must adapt the idea of Boston to new challenges, from our local streets to the global stage. We can be a city whose industry and innovation make the world a better place and provide good jobs in every neighborhood of Boston. We can be a city that heals the environment by opening our waterfront for all to enjoy. We can be the global capital of learning whose own young people know that they can change the world. And we will be that city.

To achieve this, we will build on the strong foundation we’ve set, and go even further to continue our collective upward mobility as a city. And the good news is that we are already well on our way to achieving these goals — we’re seeing this growth is every neighborhood of our city. The bottom line is that Boston is a city that’s world-class because it works for the middle class.

This doesn’t happen by accident. In Boston, we know that having a strong middle class means providing not only security for those who are already comfortable, but opportunity for all who need it.

That’s why we are committed to investing in a growing middle class through strong 21st century schools; good jobs; affordable homes in safe neighborhoods; and providing every pathway we can to lead to real opportunity. A better Boston for everyone.

It begins with a guarantee that every child, whatever their starting point, gets the education they need to thrive, which is why we’re investing $1 billion in our school facilities over the next 10 years and working towards universal pre-kindergarten for all our young learners. And it includes everything from supporting the small businesses that are the backbone of our local economy, to recruiting industry leaders from around the world who will bring new jobs and economic benefits to our city. It means moving Bostonians up into middle-class careers that pay a living wage through our newly established Boston Hires campaign that will train and place 20,000 Boston residents in good jobs, and taking advantage of the tremendous untapped talent in our neighborhoods.

Together as a city, we will continue to prioritize the needs of our working people, and do everything we can to lift our middle class up to new heights. As we move forward together into 2018 and beyond, we’re going to do all we can to make sure Boston remains an engine of upward mobility and middle-class security.